1、考研英语（二）模拟试卷 121 及答案与解析一、Section I Use of EnglishDirections: Read the following text. Choose the best word(s) for each numbered blank and mark A, B, C or D. (10 points) 0 Driving through snowstorm on icy roads for long distances is a most nerve-racking experience. It is a paradox that the snow, comin
2、g【C1 】_ gently, blowing gleefully in a high wind, all the while【C2 】_ down a treacherous carpet, freezes the windows,【C3】_ the view. The might of automated man is【C4】_ .The horses, the powerful electrical systems, the deep-tread tires, all go【C5】_ nothing. One minute the road feels【C6 】_ , and the n
3、ext the driver is sliding over it, light as a【 C7】_ , in a panic, wondering what the heavy trailer trucks coming up【C8 】_ the rear are going to do. The trucks are like【C9】_ when you have to pass them, not at sixty or seventy【C10】_ you do when the road is dry, but at twenty-five and thirty.【C11】_ the
4、ir engines sound unnaturally loud. Snow, slush and 【C12 】_ of ice spray from beneath the wheels, obscure the windshield, and rattle【C13】_ your car. Beneath the wheels there is plenty of【C14】_for you to slide and get mashed to a pulp. Inch【C15】_ inch you move up, past the rear wheels, the center whee
5、ls, the cab, the front wheels, all【C16】_ too slowly by. Straight ahead you continue,【C17】_ to cut over sharply would send you into a slip,【C18】_ in front of the vehicle. At last, there is【C19】_ enough, and you creep back over, in front of the truck now, but【C20 】_ the sound of its engine still thund
6、ering in your ears.1 【C1 】（A）up（B） off（C） down（D）on2 【C2 】（A）lies（B） lays（C） settles（D）sends3 【C3 】（A）blocks（B） strikes（C） puffs（D）cancels4 【C4 】（A）muted（B） discovered（C） doubled（D）undervalued5 【C5 】（A）for（B） with（C） into（D）from6 【C6 】（A）comfortable（B） weak（C） risky（D）firm7 【C7 】（A）loaf（B） feather（C
7、） leaf（D）fog8 【C8 】（A）beneath（B） from（C） under（D）beyond9 【C9 】（A）dwarfs（B） giants（C） patients（D）princesses10 【C10 】（A）what（B） since（C） as（D）that11 【C11 】（A）So（B） But（C） Or（D）Then12 【C12 】（A）flakes（B） flocks（C） chips（D）cakes13 【C13 】（A）onto（B） against（C） off（D）along14 【C14 】（A）snow（B） earth（C） room（D
8、）ice15 【C15 】（A）by（B） after（C） for（D）with16 【C16 】（A）climbing（B） crawling（C） winding（D）sliding17 【C17 】（A）meanwhile（B） unless（C） whereas（D）for18 【C18 】（A）sheer（B） mostly（C） rarely（D）right19 【C19 】（A）might（B） distance（C） air（D）power20 【C20 】（A）with（B） like（C） inside（D）uponPart ADirections: Read the f
9、ollowing four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. (40 points)20 The Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday that it is trying to track down as many as 386 piglets that may have been genetically engineered and wrongfully sold into the U.S. food supply.The focus o
10、f the FDA investigation is pigs raised by researchers at the University of Illinois in Urbana Champaign. They engineered the animals with two genes: One is a cow gene that increases milk production in the sow. The other, a synthetic gene, makes the milk easier for piglets to digest. The goal was to
11、raise bigger pigs faster.There has been no evidence that either genetically altered plants or animals actually trigger human illness, but critics warn that potential side effects remain unknown. University officials say their tests showed the piglets were not born with the altered genes, but FDA rul
12、es require even the offspring of genetically engineered animals to be destroyed so they dont get into the food supply.The FDA, in a quickly arranged news conference Wednesday prompted by inquiries by USA TODAY, said the University of Illinois will face possible sanctions and fines for selling the pi
13、glets to a livestock broker, who in turn sells to processing plants.Both the FDA and the university say the pigs that entered the market do not pose a risk to consumers. But the investigation follows action by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in December to fine a Texas company that contaminated 5
14、00 000 bushels of soybeans with corn that had been genetically altered to produce a vaccine for pigs.Critics see such cases as evidence of the need for more government oversight of a burgeoning area of scientific research. “This is a small incident, but its incident like this that could destroy cons
15、umer confidence and export confidence, “says Stephanie Childs of the Grocery Manufacturers of America. “We already have Europe shaky on biotech. The countries to whom we export are going to look at this.“The University of Illinois says it tested the DNA of every piglet eight times to make sure that
16、the animal hadnt inherited the genetic engineering of its mother. Those piglets that did were put back into the study. Those that didnt were sold to the pig broker. “Any pig whos tested negative for the genes since 1999 has been sent off to market, “says Charles Zukoski, vice chancellor for research
17、.But FDA deputy commissioner Lester Crawford says that under the terms of the universitys agreement with the FDA, the researchers were forbidden to remove the piglets without FDA approval. “The University of Illinois failed to check with FDA to see whether or not the animals could be sold on the ope
18、n market. And they were not to be used under any circumstance for food.“The FDA is responsible for regulating and overseeing transgenic animals because such genetic manipulation is considered an unapproved animal drug.21 The 386 piglets wrongfully sold into food supply are from_.（A）Europe（B） an Amer
19、ican research organization（C） a meat processing plant（D）an animal farm22 The purpose of the transgenic engineering research is to_.（A）get pigs of larger size in a shorter time（B） make sows produce more milk（C） make cows produce more milk（D）make pigs grow more lean meat23 The 4th paragraph shows that
20、 the University of Illinois_.（A）was criticized by the FDA（B） is in great trouble（C） is required by the FDA to call back the sold piglets（D）may have to pay the penalty24 The FDA declares that the wrongfully sold piglets_.（A）may have side effects on consumers（B） may be harmful to consumers（C） are safe
21、 to consumers（D）may cause human illness25 It can be inferred from this passage that_.（A）all the offspring have their mothers genetic engineering（B） part of the offspring have their mothers genetic engineering（C） none of the offspring have their mothers genetic engineering（D）half of the offspring hav
22、e their mothers genetic engineering. 25 For more than two decades, U.S. courts have been limiting affirmative-action programs in universities and other areas. The legal rationale is that racial preferences are unconstitutional, even those intended to compensate for racism or intolerance. For many co
23、lleges, this means students can be admitted only on merit, not on their race or ethnicity. It has been a divisive issue across the U.S., as educators blame the prolonged reaction to affirmative-action for declines in minority admissions. Meanwhile, activists continue to battle race preferences in co
24、urts from Michigan to North Carolina.Now, chief executives of about two dozen companies have decided to plunge headfirst into this politically unsettled debate. They, together with 36 universities and 7 non-profitable organizations, formed a forum that set forth an action plan essentially designed t
25、o help colleges circumvent court-imposed restrictions on affirmative action. The CEOs motive: “Our audience is growing more diverse, so the communities we serve benefit if our employees are racially and ethnically diverse as well“ , says one CEO of a company that owns nine television stations.Among
26、the steps the forum is pushing; finding creative yet legal ways to boost minority enrollment through new admissions policies; promoting admissions decisions that look at more than test scores; and encouraging universities to step up their minority outreach and financial aid. And to counter accusatio
27、ns by critics to challenge these tactics in court, the group says it will give legal assistance to colleges sued for trying them. “Diversity diminished by the court must be made up for in other legitimate, legal ways, “ says, a forum member.One of the more controversial methods advocated is the so-c
28、alled 10% rule. The idea is for public universitieswhich educate three-quarters of all U.S. undergraduatesto admit students who are in the top 10% of their high school graduating class. Doing so allows colleges to take minorities who excel in average urban schools, even if they wouldnt have made the
29、 cut under the current statewide ranking many universities use.26 U.S. court restrictions on affirmative action signifies that_.（A）minorities no longer hold the once favored status（B） the quality of American colleges has improved（C） racial preferences has replaced racial prejudice（D）the minority is
30、on an equal footing with the majority27 What has been a divisive issue across the United States?（A）Whether affirmative action should continue to exist.（B） Whether this law is helping minorities or the white majority.（C） Whether racism exists in American college admission.（D）Whether racial intoleranc
31、e should be punished.28 CEOs of big companies decided to help colleges enroll more minority students because they_.（A）think it wrong to deprive the minorities of their rights to receive education（B） want to conserve the fine characteristics of American nation（C） want a workforce that reflects the di
32、versity of their customers（D）think it their duty to help develop education of the country29 The major tactic the forum uses is to_.（A）battle the racial preferences in court（B） support colleges involved in lawsuits of racism（C） strive to settle this political debate nationwide（D）find legally viable w
33、ays to ensure minority admissions30 If the 10% rule is applied, _.（A）the best white high school students can get into colleges（B） public universities can get excellent students（C） students from poor rural families can go to colleges（D）good minority students can get into public universities30 The ear
34、ly retirement of experienced workers is seriously harming the U.S. economy, according to a new report from the Hudson Institute, a public policy research organization. Currently, many older experienced workers retire at an early age. According to the recently issued statistics, 79 percent of qualifi
35、ed workers begin collecting retirement benefits at age 62; if that trend continues, there will be a labor shortage that will hinder the economic growth in the twenty-first century.Older Americans constitute an increasing proportion of the population, according to the U. S. Census Bureau, and the pop
36、ulation of those over age 65 will grow by 60% between 2001 and 2020. During the same period, the group aged 18 to 44 will increase by only 4%. Keeping older skilled workers employed, even part time, would increase U.S. economic output and strengthen the tax base; but without significant policy refor
37、ms, massive early retirement among baby boomers seems more likely.Retirement at age 62 is an economically rational decision today. Social Security and Medicaid earnings limits and tax penalties subject our most experienced workers to marginal tax rates as high as 67%. Social Security formulas encour
38、age early retirement. Although incomes usually rise with additional years of work, any pay increases after the 35-year mark result in higher social Security taxes but only small increases in benefits.Hudson Institute researchers believe that federal tax and benefit policies are at fault and reforms
39、are urgently needed, but they disagree with the popular proposal that much older Americans will have to work because Social Security will not support them and that baby boomers are not saving enough for retirement. According to the increase in 401 (k) and Keogh retirement plans, the ongoing stock ma
40、rket on Wall Street, and the likelihood of large inheritances, there is evidence that baby boomers will reach age 65 with greater financial assets than previous generations.The Hudson institute advocates reforming government policies that now discourage work and savings, especially for older worker.
41、 Among the reports recommendations; Tax half of all Social Security benefits, regardless of other income; provide 8% larger benefits for each year beyond 65; and permit workers nearing retirement to negotiate compensation packages that may include a lower salary but with greater healthcare benefits.
42、 However, it may take real and fruitful planning to find the right solution to the early retirement of older experienced workers; any measures taken must be allowed to prolong the serviceability of older experienced workers.31 According to Hudson Institute researchers, the effect of the early retire
43、ment of qualified workers in the U.S. economy is_.（A）constructive（B） significant（C） inconclusive（D）detrimental32 The older experienced workers in America tend to retire early because their prolonged service may_.（A）do harm to younger generations（B） end up with few or no benefits（C） give play to thei
44、r potentials（D）shed light on social trends33 The second paragraph is written chiefly to show that_.（A）there will be an acute labor shortage in the near future（B） baby-boomers contribute much to the US economic output（C） government policies concerning older people are out-dated（D）older workers are en
45、thusiastic about collecting social benefits34 When mentioning “the ongoing stock market on Wall Street“ , the author_.（A）is calling attention to the privileges to which baby-boomers are entitled（B） is calling for the government to take countermeasures against labor shortage（C） is refuting a notion a
46、bout experienced workers early retirement（D）is justifying the ineffectiveness of federal tax and benefit policies35 Towards the issue, what the author is most concerned about will be_.（A）to advocate radically reforming government policies（B） to take into account the benefits upon retirement（C） to pu
47、t in practice what Hudson researchers believe in（D）to prolong the practicability of older experienced employees35 Before a big exam, a sound nights sleep will do you more good than poring over textbooks. That, at least, is the folk wisdom. And science, in the form of behavioral psychology, supports
48、that wisdom. But such behavioral studies cannot distinguish between two competing theories of why sleep is good for the memory. One says that sleep is when permanent memories form. The other says that they are actually formed during the day, but then “edited“ at night, to flush away what is superflu
49、ous.To tell the difference, it is necessary to look into the brain of a sleeping person, and that is hard. But after a decade of painstaking work, a team led by Pierre Maquet at Liege University in Belgium has managed to do it. The particular stage of sleep in which the Belgian group is interested in is rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, when brain and body are
